Candy is an vital part of Pokemon evolution in Pokemon GO. There is candy for every Pokemon evolution family, usually named after the first form in that particular evolution line. For example, Bulbasaur, Ivysaur, Venusaur all share the Bulbasaur candy.

How do I get candy in Pokemon GO?

There are several ways to obtain candy in Pokemon GO!

Catching Pokemon

One of the easiest and most common ways to collect candy is by catching Pokemon. When you catch a Pokemon of a certain evolution family, you are rewarded candy for that evolution line. The higher the Pokemon is in the evolution line, the more candy you get!

Tier

Amount of candy

1

3

2

5

3

10

Tip: Using a Pinap Berry will double the amount of candy earned! That means if you catch a Tier 3 Pokemon after using a Pinap Berry, you’ll get 20 candy (2 x 10).

Hatch Pokemon from Eggs

When hatching Eggs, you are awarded candy matching the evolution line of the Pokemon hatched. The longer distance requirement of the egg, the more candy you receive.

Transferring Pokemon

If you have a Pokemon that does not appraise well or you simply no longer want it, you can transfer that Pokemon to Professor Willow for research. Transferring a Pokemon to the Professor will award you one candy of that Pokemons evolution line.

Mass Transfer

From the Main Pokemon screen, tap and hold on the Pokemon you want to transfer. Continue this process and select all the Pokemon you want to transfer. After you’re done selecting the Pokemon, tap the transfer button.

Buddy Pokemon

Each Trainer can designate a single Pokemon to be their buddy. While a Pokemon is your buddy, they can find candy of their evolution line for you! Each Pokemon has a certain amount of distance you need to travel before they’ll find candy for you. To see distance required for a particular Pokemon, check out their Pokedex entry.

Sometimes your buddy will find bonus candy before reaching the required distance for earning a candy!

How to Assign a Buddy Pokemon?

To assign a buddy Pokemon, tap on your avatar from the main screen, and then the buddy icon.

If you swap out your Buddy Pokemon for another Pokemon, you’ll lose your current distance progress.

Once your buddy is assigned, you’ll see the buddy icon next to your Pokemon. Pokemon cannot be assigned to a gym while they are your buddy.

Easter Egg

If you walk your Pikachu 10km, they will move from sitting by your side to sitting on your shoulder! This is similar to how Pikachu often sat on Ash Ketchums shoulder.

Events

During special events, such as the Halloween event, we see candy multipliers increased for certain actions:

Walking your buddy.

Hatching eggs.

Catching Pokemon.

Transferring Pokemon.

Event multipliers and actions to earn extra candy vary from event to event.

What is candy used for in Pokemon GO?

Candy in Pokemon GO is used primarily for Powering Up and Evolving Pokemon.

Power Up

Candy is used in conjunction with Stardust to increase the stats of a Pokemon.